Roller Assembly for Collecting Debris

ABSTRACT

A roller assembly for collecting debris comprising a roll holder adapted for mounting a cylindrical roll wound by adhesive sheets for collecting debris. A pin may be inserted into a bore of the roll holder, and the roll holder may rotate about the pin. A first end of the pin may be screwed into a pin holder supported by a housing. An indentation for securing a fastener on the surface of the pin may be located near the first end of the pin. The second end of the pin may have an enlarged member. The roll holder may be retained on the pin between the fastener and the enlarged member. The enlarged member may be turned by hand so that the pin may be screwed in and out of the pin holder. A connecting member may connect the housing to a handle.

This non-provisional patent application claims priority to, andincorporates herein by reference, U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationNo. 62/020,497 filed on Jul. 3, 2014 and U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 62/129,314 filed on Mar. 6, 2015.

This application includes material which is subject to copyrightprotection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimilereproduction by anyone of the patent disclosure, as it appears in thePatent and Trademark Office files or records, but otherwise reserves allcopyright rights whatsoever.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The presently disclosed invention relates in general to the field ofrollers for collecting debris, and in particular to a cleaning or lintroller assembly.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Roller-type cleaning devices for picking up lint, hair and dust areknown in the art. Such cleaning rollers having replaceable rolls havebeen described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,158,887 which was filed in Sep. 3,1963. This publication is incorporated herein by reference. Suchroller-type devices, however, are problematic for providing assembliesfor the easy exchange of roll holders which are durable and capable ofutilizing replaceable rolls of varying sizes. The presently disclosedroller assembly addresses such limitations, inter alias, by providing animproved assembly an interchangeable roll holder to enable the supportof rolls having a range of lengths.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The presently disclosed invention may be embodied in a roller assemblyfor collecting debris. An embodiment may comprise a roll holder that maybe adapted for a cylindrical roll to be mounted on the outer-surface ofthe roll holder. The outer-surface of the cylindrical roll may be woundby adhesive sheets that may be adapted to collect debris. The rollholder may have a bore along the longitudinal axis of the roll holder.This bore may have a first opening on one end of the roll holder and asecond opening on the opposite end of the roll holder. An embodiment maycomprise a pin that may be adapted to be inserted into the bore of theroll holder. The roll holder may rotate about the pin, and theouter-surfaces of the adhesive sheets may collect debris. An embodimentmay also comprise a pin holder having a cavity that may be adapted tohold a first end of the pin. An indentation adapted for securing afastener on the outer surface of the pin may be located near the firstend of the pin. The second end of the pin may have an enlarged member.The roll holder may be retained on the pin by the fastener on one endand by the enlarged member on the other end. A housing may have a firstend that may be adapted to support the pin holder, and the housing mayhave a second end that may be adapted to connect to a connecting member.The connecting member may further be adapted to connect to a handle.

The fastener may be an U-shape washer, in accordance with someembodiments. In an embodiment, the first end of the pin and the pinholder may have corresponding threads operable for screwing the firstend of the pin into the pin holder. The enlarged member may be adaptedto be turned by hand so that the pin may be screwed in, and unscrewedout of, the pin holder.

In some embodiments, a replacement roll holder may be mounted on areplacement pin. Accordingly, the roll holder may be replaced with thereplacement roll holder. Further, an indentation adapted for securing afastener on the outer surface of the replacement pin may be located nearthe first end of the replacement pin, and the second end of thereplacement pin may have an enlarged member, so that the replacementroll holder may be retained on the replacement pin by the fastener andthe enlarged member. In order to replace the roll holder with thereplacement roll holder, the pin may first be unscrewed from the pinholder so that the pin and the retained roll holder may be removed fromthe roller assembly, and then the replacement pin may be screwed intothe pin retainer. In an embodiment, the replacement roll holder may havea different length than the roll holder.

In some embodiments, a roller assembly to collect debris may comprise aroll holder adapted for a cylindrical roll to be mounted on theouter-surface of the roll holder, and the outer-surface of thecylindrical roll may be wound by adhesive sheets adapted to collectdebris. The roll holder may have a bore along the longitudinal axis ofthe roll holder, and the bore may have a first opening on one end of theroll holder and a second opening on the opposite end of the roll holder.A pin may be adapted to be inserted into the bore of the roll holder sothat the roll holder may rotate about the pin and the outer-surfaces ofthe adhesive sheets collect debris. A pin holder may have a cavityadapted to hold a first end of the pin. In addition, a pin retainer mayadapted to be mounted on a second end of the pin. The second end of thepin and the pin retainer may have corresponding threads operable forscrewing the pin retainer onto the second end of the pin. A first end ofa housing may be adapted to support the pin holder. A connecting membermay be adapted to connect to a second end of the housing. The connectingmember may further be adapted to connect to a handle.

In certain embodiments, the roller may be reusable with a replacementroll. The cylindrical roll may be removed from the roll holder and thereplacement roll may be mounted on the roll holder. The outer-surface ofthe replacement roll may be wound by adhesive sheets that may be adaptedto collect debris.

In some embodiments, the roll holder may be replaceable with areplacement roll holder. The pin retainer may be unscrewed from thesecond end of the pin, and the roll holder may be removed from the pin.The replacement roll holder may be mounted on the pin, and the pinretainer may be screwed onto the second end of the pin.

In an embodiment, the roll holder may be interchangeable with areplacement roll holder having a different length than the roll holder.The replacement roll holder may be adapted for a replacement roll havinga length corresponding to the length of the replacement roll holder. Areplacement pin may also have a length corresponding to the length ofthe replacement roll holder. Accordingly, the first end of thereplacement pin may be adapted to be mounted in the cavity of the pinholder, and the second end of the replacement pin may have threadsoperable for screwing the pin retainer onto the second end of thereplacement pin, such that the outer-surface of the replacement roll maybe wound by adhesive sheets that may be adapted to collect debris.

In certain embodiments, the replacement roll holder may be ten incheslong and the roll holder may be six inches long. In some embodiments,the first end of the housing may comprise the pin holder. In alternativeembodiments, the pin holder may be a nut securely supported by thehousing. The housing may comprise an upper housing member and a lowerhousing member, in accordance with certain embodiments. The upperhousing member and the lower housing member may be fused together orsecured together by screws, nails, adhesives or any other means. Incertain embodiments, the housing may be a solid piece.

In an embodiment, the roller assembly may further comprise a means forconnecting the upper housing member and the lower housing member. Insome embodiments, the handle may comprise a telescopic handle. Thehandle may be made of aluminum.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing and other objects, features, and advantages of theinvention will be apparent from the following more particulardescription of embodiments as illustrated in the accompanying drawings,in which reference characters refer to the same parts throughout thevarious views. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasisinstead being placed upon illustrating principles of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic representation from a prospective-view of aroller assembly, in accordance with certain embodiments of theinvention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded-view diagrammatic representation of components fora roller assembly, in accordance with certain embodiments of theinvention.

FIGS. 3-6 are cross-sectional diagrammatic representations of a rollerassembly and its components, in accordance with certain embodiments ofthe invention.

FIGS. 7-9 are prospective-view diagrammatic representations of two rollholders having different lengths, in accordance with certain embodimentsof the invention.

FIGS. 10-11 are an exploded-view and a prospective-view diagrammaticrepresentations of a roller assembly and two roll holders havingdifferent lengths, in accordance with certain embodiments of theinvention.

FIG. 12 illustrates components of an embodiment of a roller assembly ina pre-assembled condition, in accordance with certain embodiments of theinvention.

FIGS. 13-15 are prospective-view diagrammatic representations of a rollholder, a pin and a fastener, in accordance with certain embodiments ofthe invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments of the presentlydisclosed invention, examples of which are illustrated in theaccompanying drawings.

One of the objects for embodiments may be a roller assembly or kit thatincludes a roll holder, such as a roller head, supported by a pin thatallows for the easy exchange of roll holders without compromising thedurability of the assembly. One end of the pin may be adapted to bemounted to a pin holder. The pin holder may be supported by a housing,or one end of the housing may comprise the pin holder. In certainembodiments, the opposite end of the pin may be adapted for a screw-onretainer. The roll holder may be retained on the pin in between thescrew-on retainer at one end and the pin holder at the other end.Alternatively, some embodiments may comprise a pin having one enlargedor tapering end and a indentation, slot or groove near the other endadapted for a fastener. The indentation, slot or groove may form a ringalong the outer circumference of the pin, and may be adapted for anU-shape washer or fastener. In such embodiments, the roll holder may beretained on the pin in between the enlarged end and the fastener nearthe other end. The end of the pin having the fastener may be adapted tobe mounted to a pin holder.

The object for certain embodiments may concern such an application whichenables the interchange of roll holders having varying lengths tosupport different sized rolls. Embodiments may not be limited, however,to any one application, purpose, example or object. The embodiments maybe applicable in virtually any application in which debris may becollected by an adhesive tape wound around a roll mounted on a rollholder assembly. The embodiments of the present devices are well suitedfor implementation on a telescopic stick for cleaning ceilings andwalls.

Existing roller-type solutions for picking up lint fail to providedurable roll holders which may be repeatedly exchanged over an extensiveperiod of time. Prior approaches rely on clip-on roll holders, such asthose disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,055,695 which was filed on Jun. 24,1998. This may work well while the clips continue to retain theirstructural integrity; however, when applied to repeated use andreplacing of rolls, the durability of such roll holders is compromised.In contrast, an embodiment of the present invention may provide theintegrity necessary for extended use. Further, an object of anembodiment of the present invention may include the interchangeabilityof roll holders having varying lengths. An advantage of an embodimentfor the presently disclosed invention which does not require same-sizedreplacement rolls may be appreciated when cleaning locations of limitedspace and accessibility.

A prospective-view of an embodiment of a roller assembly is shown inFIG. 1. As illustrated in the exploded-view of the components for anembodiment shown in FIG. 2, the roller assembly may include an upperhousing member 1, a lower housing member 2, a pin holder 3, a rollholder or roller head 4, a pin retainer 5, a pin 6, a connecting member7, a handle 8, an extension assembly 9, and a handle cover 10. FIGS. 3-6illustrate cross-sectional views of embodiments of a roller assembly andits components. In certain embodiments, roll holders having differentlengths may be utilized with the roller assembly, as shown in FIGS.7-11.

In a certain embodiment, a roller assembly to collect debris may includea roll holder 4 which is adapted for a cylindrical roll 11 (not shown)that may be mounted on the outer-surface of the roll holder 4. Theouter-surface of the cylindrical roll 11 may be wound by a plurality ofadhesive sheets 12 (not shown) that are adapted to collect debris. Theroll holder 4 may have a bore along the longitudinal axis of the rollholder 4. The bore may have a first opening on one end of the rollholder 4 and a second opening on the opposite end of the roll holder 4.A pin 6 may be adapted to be inserted into the bore of the roll holder4. The roll holder 4 may be adapted to be rotate about the pin 6. Theouter-surfaces of the adhesive sheets 12 that are wound around thecylindrical roll 11 may be adapted to collect debris such as lint, hair,cobwebs and dust. A pin holder 3 may have a cavity that is adapted tohold one end of the pin 6. A pin retainer 5 may be adapted to be mountedon the opposite end of the pin 6. The opposite end of the pin 6 and thepin retainer 5 may have corresponding threads that are operable forscrewing the pin retainer 5 onto the opposite end of the pin 6. The pinholder 3 may be adapted to be supported by a housing 1′. The housing 1′may comprise an upper housing member 1 and a lower housing member 2. Ameans for connecting the upper housing member 1 and the lower housingmember 2 may include fasteners, clips, screws or adhesives. A connectingmember 7 may be adapted to connect the housing 1′ to a handle 8. Incertain embodiments, the housing 1′ may comprise a single member, afirst end of the housing 1′ may comprise the pin holder 3 that isadapted to hold one end of the pin 6, and the second end of the housing1′ may be adapted to be secured to the connecting member 7. In someembodiments, the upper housing member 1 may comprise a portion of thepin holder 3 and the lower housing member 2 may comprise the remainingportion of the pin holder 3, and the pin holder 3 may be adapted to holdone end of the pin 6 when the upper housing member 1 and the lowerhousing member 2 are connected to form the housing 1′.

In some embodiments, the roller assembly may be reusable with areplacement roll 11′ (not shown). The cylindrical roll 11 may be removedfrom the roll holder 4 and a replacement roll 11′ may be mounted on theroll holder 4. The outer-surface of the replacement roll 11′ may bewound by a plurality of adhesive sheets 12 adapted to collect debris.

In an embodiment of the disclosed roller assembly, the roll holder 4 maybe replaceable with a replacement roll holder 4′. The pin retainer 5 maybe unscrewed from the opposite end of the pin 6 and the roll holder 4may be removed from the pin 6. The replacement roll holder 4′ may bemounted on the pin 6 and the pin retainer 5 may be screwed onto theopposite end of the pin 6.

In some embodiments, the roll holder 4 is interchangeable with areplacement roll holder 4′ having a different length than the originalroll holder 4. The replacement roll holder 4′ may be adapted for areplacement roll 11′ having a length corresponding to the length of thereplacement roll holder 4′. A replacement pin 6′ may have a lengthcorresponding to the length of the replacement roll holder 4′. One endof the replacement pin 6′ may be adapted to be mounted in the cavity ofthe pin holder 3. The opposite end of the replacement pin 6′ may havethreads that are operable for screwing the pin retainer 5 onto theopposite end of the replacement pin 6′. The outer-surface of thereplacement roll 11′ may be wound by a plurality of adhesive sheets 12that are adapted to collect debris.

In certain embodiments, the replacement roll holder 4′ may be ten incheslong and the roll holder 4 may be six inches long, or vice versa. Theroll holder 4 may be made of pure polystyrene or acrylonitrile butadienestyrene (ABS). The handle 8 may comprise a telescopic handle, inaccordance with some embodiments. In certain embodiments, the handle 8may be made of aluminum. In some embodiments, the handle 8 may be powdercoated.

In accordance with certain embodiments, one end of the pin 6 may beadapted to retain the roll holder 4 even when the pin 6 is not mountedon the housing 1′. The pin 6 may be adapted for mounting a washer orfastener 13 near the end of the pin 6 that is adapted for the pin holder3. The fastener 13 may prevent the roll holder 4 from sliding off ofthat end of the pin 6. The opposite end of the pin 6 may be enlarged ortapered in order to prevent the roll holder 4 from sliding off of thatend of the pin 6. In such embodiments, a pin retainer 5 would not benecessary for retaining the roll holder 4 onto the pin 6. While the rollholder 4 already mounted on the pin 6, the pin 6 along with the rollholder 4 may be secured onto the housing 1′. In certain embodiments, theroller assembly may include two sets of a roll holder 4 and a pin 6. Oneset may comprise a ten-inch roll holder 4 along with a corresponding pin6. The other set may comprise a six-inch roll holder 4 along with acorresponding pin 6. A person using the roller assembly may swap betweenthe two sets by unscrewing one set out of the pin holder 3 and thenscrewing the other set into the pin holder 3. The enlarged end of thepin 6 may have a flattened shape in order to be adapted for screwing andunscrewing the pin 6 by hand.

FIG. 12 shows components of an embodiment of a roller assembly or kit ina pre-assembled condition. The kit may comprise one or more roll holders4 (which may having varying lengths), one or more pins 6 (which mayhaving varying lengths), and an upper housing member 1. As illustratedin FIG. 12, the kit may also comprise the following components in anassembled condition: a lower housing member 2, a pin holder 3, aconnecting member 7, a handle 8, an extension assembly 9, and a handlecover 10. A pin 6 retaining a roll holder 4 may be attached to thispartially assembled roller assembly, as shown in FIG. 1. A cylindricalroll 11 (not shown) may be mounted on the outer-surface of the rollholder 4 in order to put the roller assembly in use-ready condition tocollect debris on the outer-surfaces of the adhesive sheets 12 (notshown) that are wound around the cylindrical roll 11.

FIGS. 13-15 show perspective views of a pin 6 which may be inserted intoa roll holder 4 and secured by a fastener 13 on one end of the pin 6 andby an enlarged member 14 of the pin 6 at the other end. The fastener 13may slide along an indentation or groove 15 near the former end of thepin 6. That end may also comprise threads 16 operable for screwing thepin 6 into the pin holder 3, which may have corresponding threads. Theenlarged member 14 of the pin 6 at the other end may be rotated to turnand mount the pin 6 into the pin holder 3.

While the invention has been particularly shown and described withreference to an embodiment thereof, it will be understood by thoseskilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be madetherein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.The most obvious variations to the present invention include variationin: the length of pins 6, roll holders 4 and rolls 11; the screw-on pinretainer 5; and, the fastener 13 and enlarged end of the pin 6. It isneither necessary, nor intended for this patent to outline or defineevery possible combination or embodiment. It is understood that theabove description and drawings are merely illustrative of the presentinvention and that changes in components, composition, structure andprocedure are possible without departing from the scope of the presentinvention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A roller assembly to collect debris, comprising:a roll holder adapted for a cylindrical roll to be mounted on theouter-surface of the roll holder, the outer-surface of the cylindricalroll wound by a plurality of adhesive sheets adapted to collect debris;the roll holder having a bore along the longitudinal axis of the rollholder, the bore having a first opening on one end of the roll holderand a second opening on the opposite end of the roll holder; a pinadapted to be inserted into the bore of the roll holder, whereby theroll holder rotates about the pin and the outer-surfaces of the adhesivesheets collect debris; a pin holder having a cavity adapted to hold afirst end of the pin; an indentation on the outer surface of the pin,the indentation located adjacent to the first end of the pin, theindentation adapted for securing a fastener, the second end of the pinhaving an enlarged member, whereby the roll holder is retained on thepin by the fastener and the enlarged member; a first end of a housingadapted to support the pin holder; and, a connecting member adapted toconnect to a second end of the housing, the connecting member furtheradapted to connect to a handle.
 2. The roller assembly of claim 1,wherein the fastener is an U-shape washer.
 3. The roller assembly ofclaim 1, wherein the first end of the pin and the pin holder havecorresponding threads operable for screwing the first end of the pininto the pin holder , wherein the enlarged member is adapted to beturned by hand, and whereby the pin may be screwed in, and unscrewed outof, the pin holder.
 4. The roller assembly of claim 1, furthercomprising: a replacement roll holder mounted on a replacement pin,wherein the roll holder is replaceable with the replacement roll holder;an indentation on the outer surface of the replacement pin, theindentation located adjacent to the first end of the replacement pin,the indentation adapted for securing a fastener, the second end of thereplacement pin having an enlarged member, whereby the replacement rollholder is retained on the replacement pin by the fastener and theenlarged member; and, whereby the pin is unscrewed from the pin holder,the pin and the retained roll holder are removed from the rollerassembly, and the replacement pin is screwed into the pin retainer. 5.The roller assembly of claim 4, wherein the replacement roll holder hasa different length than the roll holder.
 6. A roller assembly to collectdebris, comprising: a roll holder adapted for a cylindrical roll to bemounted on the outer-surface of the roll holder, the outer-surface ofthe cylindrical roll wound by a plurality of adhesive sheets adapted tocollect debris; the roll holder having a bore along the longitudinalaxis of the roll holder, the bore having a first opening on one end ofthe roll holder and a second opening on the opposite end of the rollholder; a pin adapted to be inserted into the bore of the roll holder,whereby the roll holder rotates about the pin and the outer-surfaces ofthe adhesive sheets collect debris; a pin holder having a cavity adaptedto hold a first end of the pin; a pin retainer adapted to be mounted ona second end of the pin, the second end of the pin and the pin retainerhaving corresponding threads operable for screwing the pin retainer ontothe second end of the pin; a first end of a housing adapted to supportthe pin holder; and, a connecting member adapted to connect to a secondend of the housing, the connecting member further adapted to connect toa handle.
 7. The roller assembly of claim 1 or 6, wherein the roller isreusable with a replacement roll, whereby the cylindrical roll isremoved from the roll holder and the replacement roll is mounted on theroll holder, and the outer-surface of the replacement roll wound by aplurality of adhesive sheets adapted to collect debris.
 8. The rollerassembly of claim 6, wherein the roll holder is replaceable with areplacement roll holder, whereby the pin retainer is unscrewed from thesecond end of the pin and the roll holder is removed from the pin andthe replacement roll holder is mounted on the pin and the pin retaineris screwed onto the second end of the pin.
 9. The roller assembly ofclaim 6, wherein the roll holder is interchangeable with a replacementroll holder having a different length than the roll holder, thereplacement roll holder adapted for a replacement roll having a lengthcorresponding to the length of the replacement roll holder, areplacement pin having a length corresponding to the length of thereplacement roll holder, the first end of the replacement pin adapted tobe mounted in the cavity of the pin holder, the second end of thereplacement pin having threads operable for screwing the pin retaineronto the second end of the replacement pin, the outer-surface of thereplacement roll wound by a plurality of adhesive sheets adapted tocollect debris.
 10. The roller assembly of claims 5 and 9, wherein thereplacement roll holder is ten inches long and the roll holder is sixinches long.
 11. The roller assembly of claim 1 or 6, wherein the firstend of the housing comprises the pin holder.
 12. The roller assembly ofclaim 1 or 6, wherein the housing comprises an upper housing member anda lower housing member.
 13. The roller assembly of claim 1 or 6, whereinthe housing comprises a solid member.
 14. The roller assembly of claim 1or 6, wherein the pin holder is a nut securely supported by the firstend of the housing, wherein the nut has threads adapted to engagethreads on the first end of the pin.
 15. The roller assembly of claim12, further comprising: a means for connecting the upper housing memberand the lower housing member.
 16. The roller assembly of claim 1 or 6,wherein the handle comprises a telescopic handle.
 17. The rollerassembly of claim 1 or 6, wherein the handle is made of aluminum.